State Police Stop 400 For Not Moving Over

Troopers in Western Maryland stopped nearly 400 cars during “Move Over March”. Emphasis on education and enforcing Maryland’s move over law was a goal of the Maryland State Police for the month of March. Troopers in Frederick, Washington, Allegany and Garrett counties stopped 393 vehicles for the violation. Maryland’s law requires motorist to move to an unoccupied lane or slow down when passing emergency and tow vehicles operating on roadways.

The Maryland State Police will focus on distracted driving for the month of April. Troopers will be utilizing a variety of resources to identify drivers who are not giving their full attention to driving. Unmarked, and covert police vehicles will be used to seek out drivers on hand held devices and driving negligently. With the increased speed limit on Interstate 70 to seventy miles an hour, the risk of crashes and injury significantly increase while driving distracted.

The Maryland State Police would like to remind drivers that all hand held devices are prohibited from being used while the vehicle is in motion. Violation of this law could result in a fine of $83 for the first offense and $140 for the second.

As of April 6, 2016 there have been 114 fatal crashes in Maryland, that number is up from 2015 where there were only 101 fatalities.